Protesters were assaulted at pro-life event, now some demand apology from VCU president

Students protest on April 10 VCU administration's response to March 29 protest against pro-life event. Photo by Andrew Kerley

Andrew Kerley, Audience Editor 

Peake Webb, Contributing Writer 

Students held a protest on Monday, April 10 demanding an apology from VCU President Michael Rao for a mischaracterization of what developed at a pro-life event on campus, according to attendants.

The events on April 10 followed a protest of a Students For Life of America event where SFLA members and security guards assaulted protesters on March 29. Rao then released a statement on April 1 about the protest. 

“We are very disappointed that a student organization’s meeting was disrupted,” Rao stated. “Speakers or groups who are invited guests on our campus deserve the right to complete their remarks in a respectful and civil environment.”

The March 29 event

The event was a stop on the “Lies Pro-Choicers Believe” tour, featuring SFLA president Kristan Hawkins and Isabel Brown, a contributor to Turning Point USA, according to SFLA at VCU’s Instagram post. It was open to the public.

“Our organization’s goal is to abolish abortion because we really believe it’s wrong,” said SFLA at VCU chapter president Autumn Walser. 

Members of the left-wing organizations Democratic Socialists of America, Young Democratic Socialists of America at VCU and Iron Front USA attended the event in protest, according to Mckenna Willis, an organizer who brought the groups together for the protest.

“The school sanctioned an event by this person [Kristan Hawkins] who is transphobic and not a friend to a big portion of our VCU community,” Willis said. 

Hawkins referred to transgender protesters as “men trying to tell women what to do with their bodies,” according to a video on her Instagram. She later referred to them as “biological men in miniskirts” in a Fox News report following the event. 

“I think it’s really damaging to have somebody spewing hate on our campus,” Willis said. “There’s a big difference between free speech and hating on students, creating an unwelcome space for them.”

The protesters’ goal was to speak over and outlast the speakers, Willis said.

“We had no malicious intent towards the actual speakers because we knew we were not going to change people’s minds,” Willis said. “The concept was that they would not be spreading their word on our campus.”

Walser began the event by saying to the crowd, “good evening, pro-lifers,” resulting in room-wide laughter.

The protesters drowned out the speech by holding signs, waving flags and chanting various phrases such as “Nazis, go home.”

Protesters hold signs and chant over Students For Life of America speech. Video courtesy of Goad Gatsby

A protester chanted in front of Walser’s face with a megaphone, prompting one of SFLA’s security guards to tell them to back away. When Kevin Feliciano, SFLA’s documentarian, tried to film the protester, they hit him with the megaphone. The security guards dragged the protester out of the room. 

The protester argued with the security guard and then tried to leave — however, VCU Police officers David Shiner, Jacob Klingman and Patrick West detained them. After approximately 15 minutes, they were taken to the exit of the building and detained further.

“They began having a panic attack due to having three people on top of them,” Willis said. “Because of that, they weren’t really cooperating.”

The event speakers Hawkins and Brown asked the audience for questions, but the protesters continued to chant “we hate facists,” “leave VCU,” “fuck pro-life” and “what do we want? Abortion rights! When do we want them? Now,” as they advanced down the steps of the conference room.

“They [SFLA members] kept misgendering me on purpose,” protester Cassandra Mellor said. “They kept calling me a biological man the whole time, slurring us left and right.”

There was plenty of space between the protesters and the speakers, according to Mellor.

“We weren’t physically intimidating anyone,” Mellor said. “We were just shouting and holding signs.”

An unidentified member of SFLA at VCU stood up out of her seat and punched Mellor’s sign amidst the commotion. Protester Natalie Hoskins III stuck her hands out towards the SFLA at VCU member, and they both grabbed each other’s hands for a moment before letting each other go.

“I saw that she was hitting a student, so I tried to put my body in between them,” Hoskins said. “I didn’t try to grab her arms or anything. She grabbed my hands and then looked at me and said, ‘don’t touch me,’ and I was like, ‘you’re grabbing me.’”

The SFLA at VCU member began recording on her phone. An unidentified protester tried to block the camera’s lens with a piece of paper, but the SFLA at VCU member grabbed it away. The protester then grabbed the SFLA at VCU member’s hand and, in response, the SFLA at VCU member attempted to slap and push them away.

Simultaneously, VCU PD officer Shiner walked into the room and said, “listen up. Everyone get the fuck out of here” — to which the protesters responded with the chant “they leave first.”

The SFLA at VCU member was escorted out of the room while protesters Mellor and Hoskins attempted to convince officers Shiner and Justin Strother that they had been assaulted. 

\One of SFLA’s security guards walked into the crowd and said “move,” to which Mellor said nothing and withstood her place.

The security guard pushed Mellor and Hoskins to the ground. When protester Mackenzie Walker got in between Mellor and the security guard, she was pushed away.

A second security guard then grabbed Walker from behind and pulled her away. Simultaneously, officer Hengle and the security guard continued to push Mellor and Hoskins down. 

“I have a nasty bruise on my arm, my ribs and on my hip,” Mellor said. “My shoulder has been kind of messed up since then as well.”

Hoskins also sustained a large bruise on her back.

“I’ve been having back pain for the last few days,” Hoskins said. 

While still pulling protester Walker out of the room, the second SFLA security guard grappled onto and shoved Walker into chapter president Walser, who was standing against a nearby table.

Students For Life of America Private security injures chapter president while removing protester from the room. First and third videos courtesy of Goad Gatsby. Second and fourth videos courtesy of Mckenna Willis. Fifth video courtesy of Autumn Walser

The security guard continually dragged Walker, shoving her against a wall.

“I was resisting,” Walker said. “The police had sided with the security guards, but they hadn’t escorted anyone out. I figured that the police might act in my favor, but they did not. I had not committed any violence. I had only gotten in between a security guard and a protester. It was self defense.”

Walker sustained a large abrasion on her shoulder. She threatened to press charges against the security guards, however, they threatened to press counter charges, according to Walker.

“I figured it wasn’t worth it because they’re funded by people who are gonna have better lawyers than some random college student,” Walker said.

Roughly 40 minutes after the beginning of the event, VCU PD directed all parties to leave the room, and the event was shut down.  

SFLA at VCU members are pressing charges against Hoskins for assault, and the other unnamed protester for a count of disorderly conduct, according to Hoskins.

SFLA chapter president Walser was disappointed that the organization didn’t get to follow through with the event, she said.  

“We were excited to talk to people with differing opinions and have them listen to ours,” Walser said. “We did a lot of planning and preparing for the event, so it was very disappointing to have people overrun the event and stifle our free speech.”

The aftermath

“VCU has been my home for many years now,” Hoskins said. “Every day I bike through the campus and hang out with friends on campus. While I am not a student, I fundamentally am a member of the queer culture that permeates throughout VCU.”

The charged protesters were there because they were invited by VCU students, according to Hoskins.

Three Fox News articles, a New York Post article, a Daily Mail article, a Daily Signal article, a Daily Caller article and five SFLA blog posts referred to the protesters as “non-students,” “violent,” “ANTIFA agitators,” or “transgender activists.” 

None of the protesters present claimed to be a part of ANTIFA. Young Democratic Socialists of America at VCU is an official VCU club, giving them the same level of officiality as SFLA at VCU. 

“ANTIFA” is shorthand for “anti-fascists,” an umbrella term for activists with far-left political leanings.

“ANTIFA is not an organization and there’s no ANTIFA headquarters,” said YDSA at VCU president Nicholas Ferlazzo. “I am an anti-fascist, but I don’t participate in the ANTIFA stereotype that right-wing people portray.”

In a SFLA blog post, Hawkins accused VCU of not protecting their right to freedom of speech.

“They have their First Amendment rights, their freedom of speech,” protest organizer Willis said. “But, we also have our First Amendment rights to protest and to our own freedom of speech. Freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequences. That was the consequence of pro-lifers coming to VCU.”

Student protesters held a meeting with VCU Dean of Students Reuban Rodriguez demanding a public apology on April 3, according to Willis.

“We asked him why his office and the VCU Police Department failed to protect their students,” Willis said. “We were met with ‘I’m not sure,’ ‘I can’t speak on that,’ and he even blamed us for parts of it.”

The protesters gave Rodriguez 48 hours to respond before they would hold another protest, according to Willis.

The April 10 event

Many of the same protesters from March 29 gathered on the Compass — the area in the middle of the campus library, dining hall and student commons — holding signs and chanting phrases like, “listen Rao, hear our cry! You ignore us, we multiply.”

“The university basically tried to paint us as outside agitators and claim that we were the ones getting in fights and assaulting people when that is the opposite of the truth,” Ferlazzo said.

The protesters marched to Rao’s office on West Franklin Street and formed a line around the perimeter, distributing flyers to people passing by.

“The goal of the demonstration was to show that VCU students are watching,” Mellor said. “We’re watching the administration’s actions, and we’re not afraid to stand up for what we believe in and for our classmates who were brutally assaulted by Students For Life, the actual ‘outside agitators’ at that event.”

As the group walked back to the Compass they ran into Rodriguez, whom they asked to make a statement, according to Mellor. 

“I had a megaphone, so I said, ‘Reuban, we want to talk, what are you going to do to protect students,’ and he literally ran away,” Mellor said.

Neither Rao nor Rodriguez have made a statement on the April 10 protest.

“I would say, to Rao and to the Dean of Students, that they have presented a whole lot of questions,” Willis said. “I would suggest that they start finding answers, because it was their failures that got us here.”

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